<?php
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$xhtml = array(
	'<{title}>' => 'Impact on the carbon cycle',
	'<{subtitle}>' => 'Written in <span title="Introduction to Environmental Science">ENVS 1301</span> by <a href="https://y.st./">Alex Yst</a>, finalised on 2018-05-09',
	'<{copyright year}>' => '2018',
	'takedown' => '2017-11-01',
	'<{body}>' => <<<END
<p>
	One of the major cycles on the planet, and the one I most frequently think about, is the carbon cycle.
	Many of our daily activities impact this cycle.
	Sometimes we affect it directly.
	When we drive fossil-fuel-powered motor vehicles, we release carbon dioxide into the air.
	Other times, we affect this cycle indirectly.
	When we purchase goods, other people and factories are releasing CO<sub>2</sub> on our behalf.
	For that matter, our regular breathing is a normal part of the carbon cycle.
	Our impact on this cycle is causing climate change, and it&apos;s not something we should sit idly by and ignore.
</p>
<h2>My biggest impacts</h2>
<p>
	I do my best to keep my carbon emissions low, but there&apos;s no way to completely cancel them out.
	The biggest impact I make is likely through my purchasing of goods.
	I shop second-hand when I can, but I do buy food, and the food I buy is transported to the store in large trucks powered by fossil fuels.
	I also use electricity in my home.
	While most of the electricity in my area comes from renewable sources, a small portion of it does come from fossil fuels.
</p>
<h2>Reducing my impact</h2>
<p>
	Reducing my impact further than I already have would be no easy task.
	I don&apos;t drive a motor vehicle; for that matter, I&apos;ve never even had a license to drive.
	Instead, I walk and bike to get where I need to go, even when where I need to go is in the next city over.
	It really helps that my city and the next city over are Siamese twins, almost like one big city.
	I&apos;m also vegan.
	Animal products have been proven to have a higher impact on the carbon cycle, so I avoid them.
	I keep my lights off whenever I can, instead relying on light from the windows; light that I have no impact on and will be there whether I use it or not.
	I&apos;ve also sworn never to have children, for a number of reasons.
	Because of this, I won&apos;t be creating new people that will add to the excess carbon issue.
	I shop second-hand when at all feasible, so I avoid adding to my carbon footprint through factories when I can.
	I even sew up my ripped clothing when I&apos;m able to do so without it looking terrible.
</p>
<p>
	So what else can I give up to reduce my carbon footprint?
	I buy digital music, though sometimes, an artist talks me into buying physical copies as well.
	<a href="https://marcwithac.bandcamp.com/">Marc With a C</a> is particularly good at getting me to buy physical copies.
	For example, I have five vinyl records from Marc, and yet I don&apos;t even have a record player.
	So for starters, I could stop buying things I don&apos;t even have a use for beyond the decoration of my home.
	Other decorative items could be avoided too.
	I could do without some of the clothing I buy as well.
	As I said, I buy my clothing second hand, but it still gets transported in big trucks.
	I&apos;ve got more clothing than will fit in a single laundry load, so I really don&apos;t need to buy more, even though I do sometimes.
	I could also replace the lights in my home with more energy-efficient ones.
	My intent has always been to replace the existing light bulbs with energy efficient ones as they burn out.
	Since I moved in though, only one bulb has burned out, and due to that particular one being redundant, I haven&apos;t replaced it at all.
	I use the lights so little that they&apos;re lasting pretty well for me.
	However, I could replace the inefficient bulbs today instead of waiting for them to burn out.
	That&apos;d save power, and thus reduce CO<sub>2</sub> emissions.
	That said, the wasted light bulbs would likely cause more of an emission issue, as most of the electricity in the area is green power anyway.
	I could also give up computers and the Internet.
	One last thing I could do is go <strong>*raw*</strong> vegan.
	The most energy-consuming appliance in my apartment is probably my stove and oven set.
	If I didn&apos;t cook, it&apos;d save power.
	Honestly though, cooked meals aren&apos;t something I&apos;m willing to give up at the moment, and with the electricity in the area being mostly green, the impact I&apos;d save from that would be minimal anyway.
</p>
<h2>Balance</h2>
<p>
	The assignment asks how difficult it is to balance personal choices and environmental considerations.
	That completely depends on your personal frame of reference though.
	For example, my mother finds this to be incredibly difficult.
	She, for the most part, won&apos;t make environmentally-friendly choices unless there&apos;s some other reason to do so.
	For example, she too buys things second-hand, but she does it purely to save money.
	Her attitude is apparent in her speech if you&apos;ve known her a while, and she feels she&apos;s more important than the planet and more important than those around her.
	She frequently seems to feel entitled to things that make no sense for her to have, not just when it comes to things that impact the environment.
	To me, this seems exceedingly arrogant, and to someone such as her, such a balance is nearly impossible to find.
	On the other hand, my siblings and I have a much easier time with it.
	I think about the impact of everything I do.
	Environmentalism permeates my daily life, and it&apos;d take a lot of effort <strong>*not*</strong> to seek a balance.
	For me, the only difficulty in seeking an environmental balance is the research needed.
	I usually don&apos;t have time to look for new environmental issues to be aware of, though if something is brought to my attention, I do my best to factor it in without a second thought.
</p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>
	The carbon cycle is an important part of our world.
	By reducing our carbon footprint, we can work to restore a balance we&apos;ve disrupted.
	Personally, I take carbon footprint reduction to a bit of an extreme, and I openly admit that.
	However, there are still things every person could do to improve the situation without going as overboard as I do.
</p>
END
);
